The Athletic journalist James McNicholas has revealed Arsenal defender William Saliba’s contract expires at the end of this season.
Before any Gunners supporters get into a panic about the player’s future, though, McNicholas also confirmed that the club do have the option to extend his stay at the Emirates for another year:
🔴 Arsenal confident of extending Saka and Saliba contracts as well as Martinelli
🔴 Timing difficult given great start to season and World Cup approaching
🔴 Club has to balance rewarding top youngsters with how they rebalanced wage bill— The Athletic UK (@TheAthleticUK) October 18, 2022
Saliba still has a strong negotiating position, considering he will effectively be reaching the final eighteen months of his contract in the New Year, so talks over his future will probably take precedence over other players.
McNicholas has confirmed that discussions are also ongoing with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli; both of whom are keen to stay at Arsenal, which should help negotiations move forward over the coming weeks.
It is believed that the Gunners are keen to extend Aaron Ramsdale’s current deal as well, despite the 24-year-old only having arrived at the club just over a year ago.